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Thursday, March 13, 2014

Ikea Expedit Hack Platform Bed

I don't know if you've heard the news! Seems that Ikea is discontinuing their Expedit line. Run don't walk to pick up some pieces before their gone! We bought a few of their shelves last year to make my daughter's Platform Bed.

With kids, you are always looking for more space in their rooms to hide their toys and stuff. With my oldest, it's books. She reads a ton and really fast too. I try and get most of her books from the library since she reads them so quickly. It's really not worth it to buy her them when she is done in a day. I have had luck finding books at garage sales and Goodwill. I like to buy her favorites that she will read again, like Harry Potter and American Girl books. So, she has accumulated a nice collection of books and we needed space to keep them all. This Ikea Hack Platform Bed is the perfect way to add storage to a room without taking up more room.

You will need a piece of plywood, 2 4x4s, 2 2x4s, T brackets, screws and nails. You will also need two Expedit bookcases. My husband began by building the base out of 4x4 posts and 2x4's to brace between them. The height of the 4x4 posts was just a bit taller than the bookcases that were going to be slid next to them. Cut a piece of plywood just an inch or two smaller than your mattress. Center the plywood on top of your base and attach it with nails to your 4x4 posts.

Here is a close up of the brackets he used to attach the 2x4 braces.

After the base was complete, I wrapped black felt across the top of the plywood and wrapped it under to cover the bottom of the plywood as well. I used a staple gun to keep it in place. This will protect your mattress and also the bookcases you will slide under it.

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The next step is to simply slide your Expedit bookcases under your plywood. The base plus the bookcases really makes the bed quite sturdy. We used a full size mattress on our platform bed, but I'm sure you could adjust this to fit a queen or twin (with one bookcase) as well.

The end of your bed will have this opening. You could paint the posts to match your bookcases, staple a piece of felt to cover the opening, or staple or drape a piece of cloth over the end to create a bed skirt kind of look. We actually wanted to use this extra space between the bookcases for more storage, so we added two small storage ottomans to make a bench at the end of the bed. We can easily drag them out of the way to get to her overnight bags and items she doesn't need too often.

We've had the Platform Bed set up for almost a year now and I just don't know what we'd do without all that extra storage. It really helps to keep my daughter organized and is so easy for her to get to everything she needs. I was nervous about the sturdiness, but it has been great with no issues. I hope this guide is helpful to you in building your own version of the Ikea hack platform bed!﻿

For any who are wondering, Ikea isn't so much discontinuing Expedit as modifying it. To avoid confusion, they're calling the new version Kallax. Looks like that should still work for this wonderful hack.

Ikea is adding a new line that is a modification of the old Expedit that I'm sure you could use. It's called Kallax and looks similar. I'm sure you could find another comparable bookcase somewhere else or even build your own.

Most of the weight will be put on the 4x4 wood structure that is built. The shelves were just slid in underneath the plywood. There will be some pressure on them if someone is sitting on the edge. My husband is over 200 lbs and has laid on our daughter's bed. I think it would work for your son, but just make sure your base is strong and sturdy. Thanks and good luck!

Hi, I just saw your post on pinterest and love your idea. Question - how long is your bed? My son's bed is 75 inches long, but the shelves are less than 60 inches tall according to the website. Did you add anything as a filler for the length of the bed?

They changed their shelving units. The ones we have are 73 inches long, so I didn't have to add anything else. I would suggest either finding another shelving unit that you could use under the end of the bed. Or you could slide the shelves towards the end of the bed and use a couple of extra 4x4 posts to support the head of the bed. Good luck!

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About Me

I am a stay at home Mom of three sweet little girls and wife to the best husband. I love to create things for my friends and family. I wouldn't call myself a professional crafter or anything close to that! I believe you can make beautiful things and make gifts to show you care with even simple projects. I'd like to share with you some of my ideas and hope that you will find your own inspirations!

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